TNA

One of the objectives of the PITHIA-NRF project is to provide effective and convenient access to the best European research facilities for observations of the upper atmosphere. This access is organised through the Trans-National Access (TNA) programme, and gives the possibility for external research teams to perform their own projects working in one of the PITHIA-NRF nodes. Through these activities new users will learn how to work with the facilities during the full access cycle, from setting up a campaign, to collection, analysis and finally exploitation of data with the help of tools and services provided by PITHIA-NRF.

The TNA activities in PITHIA-NRF are organised with twelve nodes providing access to key experimental and data processing facilities for studies and modelling of the physical processes acting in the Earth’s plasmasphere, ionosphere and thermosphere. There will be a TNA Call twice per year, where potential users can propose projects and they can request either a physical access (one-week visit) or a one-month remote access, taking into account the commitments of the users and the nodes. The selection process is described in each Call.

The facilities connected to the PITHIA-NRF nodes are geographically distributed over Europe, as well as internationally, and their expertise and dedication span over a wide range of topics within the research area. This variety of expertise and techniques, all with the purpose to study specific parts of the ionosphere-thermosphere-plasmasphere (ITP), allows for a common ground and platform for a better understanding of the many different complex couplings and interactions within ITP as well as between ITP and the magnetospheric/space environment. You can click on the map below for more details.

A description of the PITHIA-NRF capacities, including data, metadata, research models and research facilities, is available here, as well as on the the PITHIA-NRF Knowledge Book.

You can reach the TNA Support Centre here.